- Contract signings eased 0.6% in June to 617,000 annual rate
- New-home inventory increased to highest level since 2008
Sales of new US homes unexpectedly declined to a seven-month low in June as the mix of stubbornly high mortgage rates and prices deterred prospective buyers.
Contract signings on new single-family homes decreased 0.6% to a 617,000 annual pace, following a nearly 15% drop in May that was the largest in two years, according to government data released Wednesday. The figure was weaker than all but two estimates in a Bloomberg survey of economists.
The latest figures follow a topsy-turvy first half of the year, with sales ga